Friday Feature - 14.04.17

As part of our Meet the Maker series on our blog, we have created Friday Feature. Every Friday we will feature a team member and their Etsy shop, to give you a quick glance behind the scenes and discover more about our diverse team members.

Friday 14 April, 2017 - Shutter Jewellery

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF:

I was born in South West London and grew up in Walton on Thames, where I still live now (with a brief spell by the Cornish coast a few years ago!) I love photography and experimenting with my photographs is where the inspiration for Shutter Jewellery came from. When I'm not working on my jewellery, I'll probably be walking along a stretch of the Thames with my camera and my little spaniel, Socks, by my side looking for ideas.

Me and the other member of the business, Socks

HOW DID YOU GET STARTED ON ETSY?

I discovered Etsy several years ago when I was looking for unusual birthday presents and was amazed at the huge amount of amazing products and talent. When I started my business it seemed like the logical place to start getting my work out there. It's hard work getting products noticed amongst all the other great items on the site but it makes it all the more rewarding and exciting when a customer picks one of my items. The irony is, given that my work is all based around photography, I am never happy with my product photos and I take and retake them all the time! I love the community aspect of Etsy - forums, teams, facebook groups and local events - I've learned so much from other sellers which has helped me improve my business and I hope some of my input my have been useful to someone else too!

TELL US ABOUT YOUR DESIGN/MAKING PROCESS:

I began making jewellery based around photos from my own portfolio. I shrink them down and mount them in little frames, set them under glass or transfer them onto materials such as acrylic or wood. Now I go out specifically looking for subjects to shoot which may work on a teeny tiny scale - strong patterns, colour, shape. There is a lot of experimentation involved both at the photography stage and the jewellery making process itself. Whenever I have one piece perfected I want to try something new!

My most recent piece and a good example of simple distinctive shapes work really well.

WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE THING ABOUT RUNNING YOUR OWN BUSINESS?

I like to do things my way! I think I've always worked best on my own and also every little achievement is so much more rewarding knowing it's a result of your own hard work and ideas.

WHEN AND WHY DID YOU JOIN THE TEAM?

Fairly recently, even though I followed the team and had attended many of the same events as other team members! I was speaking to another member at a Molesey Makers event who encouraged me to apply and join. Very pleased I did.